Warriors-Rockets Preview

By ELI KABERONPosted Dec 05 2013 4:19PM

James Harden had one of the worst games of his career his last time out. If the Houston Rockets are going to avoid a season-high third straight loss when they host the Golden State Warriors on Friday night, they'll likely need better play from their star guard.

Harden went 3 of 17 from the field and 0 for 10 from 3-point range in a 97-88 loss to Phoenix on Wednesday. His 10 misses from beyond the arc were tied for the most 3-point attempts without a make in his five-year career.

"We have 82 games, so it's going to happen. We're going to miss some shots," said Harden, who is still battling a foot injury that kept him out of four games in November. "Other guys have to step up and make plays and fit our system."

The Rockets (13-7) lead the NBA in points per game at 108.1, and Harden is among seven Houston players who average at least 9.5.

Injuries have cut into that depth, though, as starters Chandler Parsons, Jeremy Lin and Omer Asik sat out against Phoenix.

"I don't care who's not there, you just gotta go play and we didn't play the right way," coach Kevin McHale said.

Center Dwight Howard, who signed with the Rockets last summer after considering Golden State and several other teams, has gone four straight games without a blocked shot for the first time in his career.

The Warriors (11-8) have won two straight, both in dramatic fashion. Two days after winning by two in Sacramento, Golden State rallied from a 27-point halftime deficit to top the Raptors 112-103 on Tuesday. It shot 48.8 percent in the second half and Stephen Curry scored 23 of his team-high 27 points after the break.

"I've got a team that competes," coach Mark Jackson said. "When we are at our best we are pushing the basketball and making plays."

Curry and backcourt mate Klay Thompson lead a Warriors team that shoots 43.7 percent from 3-point range, best in the NBA.

"We have a lot of shooters," Thompson said. "As a shooter you've got to be a continuous player, not worry about the last shot and just let it fly."

Houston has allowed its last two opponents to go a combined 21 for 41 from 3-point range.

"We're a team that has to be on all cylinders at all times," forward David Lee said. "Play as a team the entire time we're on the floor, and play with a lot of intensity and energy or we can get beat by anybody."

The Rockets have won 17 of the last 20 meetings between the teams, averaging 112.8 points.

However, Houston's nine-game home winning streak in the series was snapped in the Warriors' last visit March 17, as Curry and Thompson combined for 55 points in a 108-78 victory.

Copyright 2013 by STATS LLC and Associated Press. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and Associated Press is strictly prohibited

Harden scores 34, Rockets beat Warriors 105-83

By JEREMY RAKESPosted Dec 07 2013 12:04AM

HOUSTON (AP) The Rockets' offense is one of the best in the NBA. However, against Golden State on Friday night, it was the defense that was the key.

Houston leaned on its defense in the first quarter while jumping out to a double-digit lead it didn't relinquish.

James Harden scored 34 points, Dwight Howard had 22 points and 18 rebounds, and the Rockets beat the Warriors 105-83.

Terrence Jones added 16 points and 10 rebounds for the Rockets, who had lost two straight. Harden shot 13 for 22 from the field and 7 for 9 on free throws two nights after shooting 3 for 17 - including 0 for 10 on 3-pointers - against Phoenix.

Howard was 12 for 20 on free throws as the Rockets finished 25 for 39 from the line. Houston was also 45 percent from the field.

"That's the way we play," Harden said. "If we don't get after them on the defensive end, it's going to be tough for us. We were getting huge stops and getting out in transition. We did a good job early in the game of putting pressure on their guards, and we got things going our way."

Stephen Curry led the Warriors with 22 points and five assists, but was just 5 of 14 from the field while making all 11 free-throw attempts. Harrison Barnes had 14 points and seven rebounds, Kent Bazemore added 12 and David Lee 11 points as the Warriors saw their two-game win streak end.

Golden State shot 36 percent from the field, including 2 for 16 on 3s.

"They're a tough team," Houston coach Kevin McHale said. "They shoot a lot of 3s. They shoot them at a really high percentage. We were trying to get them off the line and keep pressure on them and keep our bids up so they just couldn't walk into shots. For the most part, we did a very good job of that."

Golden State coach Mark Jackson said it was a bad loss.

"The way we started the ball game, there have been times when our bench has been bad, and we let them know, and tonight, the starters did a poor job of setting the tone," Jackson said. "We got outworked. They played with more force and that set the tone the rest of the way."

The Rockets led 61-37 at halftime and pushed the advantage to 28 on Harden's three-point play less than 2 minutes into the third quarter.

Golden State pulled to 74-50 on Jermaine O'Neal's jumper midway through the third, and the Warriors resorted to `Hack-a-Howard' with 5:40 remaining in the period.

Howard made 2 of 4 from the line, and the Warriors pulled to 76-54 on O'Neal's layup with 5:06 to go in the quarter. Howard connected on the next two free throws, and the Warriors went away from hacking him.

Golden State got no closer than 15 points the rest of the way.

"It's like tonight we didn't hit shots early, and we have a tendency to dwell on that, and we weren't getting stops and we can't turn the ball over on offense," Curry said. "We gave them extra possessions early in the game to get their confidence going."

Houston opened up a 31-12 lead after the first quarter on 60-percent shooting from the field.

The Rockets hit nine of their first 11 field goals as Jones led the way with 11 points in the quarter and Howard had nine.

"We did the best job we could on making sure those guys didn't get 3s off tonight, and that's where it started," Howard said. "Our defense was great from the beginning. We had a lot of deflections. We ran the floor well and put pressure on their guards to make plays to other guys instead of them coming off and scoring."

Golden State opened the second with five straight points to pull within 14 on Curry's 3, but the Rockets responded with a 16-6 spurt over a 5-minute stretch to open up a 55-30 lead on Patrick Beverley's layup with 1:30 to go in the half. Harden had eight points in the run.

The Warriors shot 27 percent from the field and hit 1 of 8 from beyond the arc in the first half after scoring 19 points in the first quarter three nights earlier against Toronto and trailing by 17 at the half.

"I know there is a reason for it that's excusable," Klay Thompson said of the slow starts. "It's very disappointing. As a starter, we have to come out there with unlimited energy."

NOTES: Houston forward Chandler Parsons returned after missing the last two games with back spasms. Parsons finished with eight points and five assists on 3-of-13 shooting in 34 minutes. ... The Warriors' 12 first quarter points tied a season low for a quarter and was the Warriors' fewest points in a first quarter. ... The 12 first-quarter points was also a season-low for points in a quarter allowed by the Rockets.

Copyright 2013 by STATS LLC and Associated Press. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and Associated Press is strictly prohibited

Notebook: Rockets 105, Warriors 83

THE FACT: The Houston Rockets limited the Golden State Warriors to season lows in field-goal percentage (35.5 percent), 3-point field-goal percentage (12.5 percent), 3-pointers made (two) and assists (10) in Friday's win.

THE LEAD: One game after staging an epic late-game comeback from a 27-point deficit, the Warriors dug another huge hole out of which they could not climb.

Dwight Howard scored 22 points and grabbed 18 rebounds, and James Harden added a game-high 34 points and seven rebounds as the Rockets cruised to a 105-83 victory over Golden State on Friday at Toyota Center. Terrence Jones added a double-double with 16 points and 10 boards to go with three blocks for Houston (14-7), which snapped a two-game skid while winning for the seventh time in its last eight home contests.

Stephen Curry scores 22 to lead the Warriors (11-9), who have lost three of their last four road games. But the sharpshooter committed eight turnovers and went just 5-for-14 from the field. Curry remains two 3-pointers shy of breaking Jason Richardson's franchise record of 700. The fifth-year shooting guard's teammates were hardly in rhythm either, as Golden State set season lows in several offensive categories and committed 22 turnovers that led to 23 points for the Rockets.

QUOTABLE: "That's the way we play. If we don't get after it on the defensive end, it's going to be tough for us. ... [It was] desperation. We had to win a game. We lost two games we should have won [to Utah and Phoenix], so it was time to come home and just win."-- James Harden

THE STAT: The Warriors allowed at least 100 points for the eighth game in a row, falling to the Rockets for the 18th time in the last 21 meetings between these clubs.

TURNING POINT: Golden State grabbed a 2-0 lead on an Andrew Bogut dunk, but that was about as close as the Warriors came to challenging Houston. Fueled by intense first-quarter performances on both ends of the court from Jones, Harden and Howard, the Rockets proceeded to outscore Golden State 31-10 over the remainder of the period to build a 19-point lead it never relinquished. The Warriors' Curry and Klay Thompson (2-for-10) only made matters easier for the opposition in the opening 12 minutes by bricking all of their shot attempts and throwing several questionable passes that ignited fast breaks for Houston.

QUOTABLE II: "Tonight, our starters did a poor job of setting the tone. We got outworked. They played with more force, and it set the tone for the rest of the way."-- Golden State coach Mark Jackson

HOT: Howard established himself early and often and surpassed 15 points for the first time in eight contests, but it was his dominance on the glass that truly sparked the Rockets' explosive first half. The 7-footer has snatched 18 rebounds in consecutive games after failing to pull down more than 11 boards in each of the previous five tilts.

QUOTABLE III: "He got the ball in the paint, he was strong, got fouled a lot and made his free throws. ... He's one of those guys, he can go get a ton of rebounds. He's a huge, huge part of what we're doing." -- Houston coach Kevin McHale on Howard

NOT: The Warriors could not have looked much worse offensively to begin this one, as they connected on only four of 20 field-goal attempts and committed six turnovers during the opening quarter. The starting backcourt of Curry and Thompson combined to miss all six of their shots, while Harrison Barnes went 0-for-5.

QUOTABLE IV: "Nights like tonight we didn't hit shots early, and we have a tendency to dwell on that as opposed to getting stops and letting that lead to easy offense. ... In road games like this, our defense has to show up for us to weather the storm of cold-shooting nights."-- Stephen Curry

GOOD MOVE: After delivering a pair of quiet performances, Jones recaptured the aggressive approach that has helped Houston set the tone in several games since he joined its starting five. The second-year forward's work on the glass and commitment to run the court in the early going not only knocked Golden State big man David Lee off-balance, but also led to Jones scoring 11 of the Rockets' first 18 points.

BAD MOVE: Jackson brought veteran Jermaine O'Neal off the bench late in the first period and matched him up one-on-one with Howard. The 6-foot-11 big man was no match for Howard, who bullied O'Neal in the paint and earned deep position on multiple occasions en route to netting nine points in a two-and-half minute span. Incidentally, Golden State's deficit grew from 10 to 17 during this stretch.

NOTABLE: The Warriors' Andre Iguodala and Toney Douglas are accompanying their teammates on Golden State's three-game road trip, an indication that at least one of these players could come back to the lineup before the Warriors return to the Bay Area. "[Douglas] has been trying to lobby for me to put him back into the lineup and give him a chance to play, but we want to stay true to the process and make sure he's healthy in whole," Jackson said. "I think it's important to make sure [guys are] 100 percent because what we don't want is a setback." ... Forward Chandler Parsons returned to Houston's starting five after missing the previous two games with back spasms. He finished with eight points on 3-for-13 shooting, five assists and three steals in 34-plus minutes of action. ... The Rockets allowed a season-low 12 points in the first quarter. ... Howard blocked a Barnes shot with 3:05 remaining in the fourth period, snapping a career-worst streak of four-plus games without a rejection. ... Houston has finished with at least 50 total rebounds in eight games this season, which is tied for the most in the league this season with Philadelphia. ... The Rockets collected a season-best 14 steals. ... Golden State fell to 8-9 against the Western Conference this season and 2-6 versus Southwest-Division foes. ... The Warriors are now 0-4 this season when playing on Friday. ... Lee has scored in double figures in 96 consecutive contests, the third-longest active streak in the NBA.